talkmagic.co.uk

Im glad my thoughts have encouraged you all to add your little .......

for me i grew up as did we all watching the Paul Daniels Magic shows and had a keen intrest in Magic particularly stage magic and big illusions...it wasnt till much later in life that i met Paul and Debbie who were expiriencing difficulties with their web site etc and on meeting him i wondered what all the hype was about this was a normal down to earth person who was content on making a living to provide for his whole family and his families future.

and as we became friends Paul started to teach me...only off the cuff nothing structured but everytime we met it was more than just educational he knows tricks inside out he has the ability to watch a trick being performed and able to repeat it after only seeing it two or three times.

Then when he realised i was originally a mechanical and electrical engineer by trade long before the web stuff, he showed me the mechanics of some of his illiusions and it fueled my interest further.

and i take on board your comment about is this post about my love for Paul and Debbie in some respects yes...Im currently going through a divorce and Paul was the first person who actually sat me down and said its going to hurt ..... hes met my kids and told me how he used to leave from visiting his children when he divorced his wife only to drive 5 mins down the road and pull over and cry for an hour ....HE WAS SO SO RIGHT and not the sort of thing i expected him to say

and theres lots that people dont know about Paul ...how many people realised he was responsible for the Illusions in Lloyd Webbers Phantom

theres so much more to the man than people realise

I also grew up watching Paul and Debbie on TV and have been a fan for many years.

I've not seen Paul live but I do have tickets to see him next Wednesday in Coventry and I'm very much looking forward to it. it would be great to meet him afterwards if he does a 'meet and greet' which I am informed he regularly does.

He appears to have had so many other celebs, mainly c list level, criticise him over the past few years yet unlike many he doesn't bite and remains refined. Got to take your hat off to him for that aswell.

Indeed, and as is obvious from the sentiments expressed here the guy has a lot of respect from those that know what they're talking about. And me too of course.

Fact is if you don't see his name being bandied around in the same breath as the Sankeys and the McBrides it's not because he's in any way less of a performer or a magician generally, but more a case of him not being sat firmly in the centre ground of the current hot topics to talk about. The figures that get discussed and debated by the likes of this sort of place are the veritable tip of the iceberg when it comes to competent, nay excellent, performers that make a decent full time living from magic. Think of the likes of Benjamin Earl who have spent their entire careers under the radar of the 'scene' but have acts full of genuinely innovative and fresh material that they choose not to release for any number of reasons.

I think there's also the issue of 'edge'. Paul Daniels is an all-round entertainer. There's nothing about his act that would be unsuitable for children, and he doesn't use any rude words. As I recall, there's very little inuendo in a Paul Daniels performance. And because of this, he's easily labelled as 'light entertainment', and dismissed by those who claim to want something more 'edgy'.

The sad fact is, though, that edginess is no yardstick for quality. And there are few 'edgy' magicians that come close to being as engaging as Paul Daniels.

bronz wrote:Indeed, and as is obvious from the sentiments expressed here the guy has a lot of respect from those that know what they're talking about. And me too of course.

Fact is if you don't see his name being bandied around in the same breath as the Sankeys and the McBrides it's not because he's in any way less of a performer or a magician generally, but more a case of him not being sat firmly in the centre ground of the current hot topics to talk about. The figures that get discussed and debated by the likes of this sort of place are the veritable tip of the iceberg when it comes to competent, nay excellent, performers that make a decent full time living from magic. Think of the likes of Benjamin Earl who have spent their entire careers under the radar of the 'scene' but have acts full of genuinely innovative and fresh material that they choose not to release for any number of reasons.

heres a link for you bronz http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Kpg_VRBEXKY